To Be and to Have (2002)

Original title

Être et avoir

Directed by

Nicolas Philibert

Genre

documentary film

Country

France

Runtime

1h 44m

Rated

NR

Rating

7.3 of 10 from 150 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

This documentary follows a teacher and his small class of mixed-age students in a rural French school over the course of a year. It shows everyday lessons and interactions with quiet attention to the teacher's calm demeanor and the children's growth.

intimateobservationalgentlepatientwarmslow-pacedquietearthy

What happens

To Be and To Have (French: Être et avoir; also the UK title) is a 2002 French documentary film directed by Nicolas Philibert about a small rural school. It was screened as an "Out of Competition" film at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival and achieved commercial success. The film became the subject of an unsuccessful legal action by the school's teacher, who said that he and the children's parents had been misled about the film's intended audience, and that he and the children had been exploited. The documentary's title translates as "to be and to have", the two auxiliary verbs in the French language. It is about a primary school in the commune of Saint-Étienne-sur-Usson, Puy-de-Dôme, France, the population of which is just over 200. The school has one small class of mixed ages (from four to twelve years), with a dedicated teacher, Mr Lopez, who shows patience and respect for the children as we follow their story through a single school year. The film won several awards, including the 2003 Sacramento French Film Festival Audience Prize. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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